DENVER – Have glove, will travel (around the baseball field). Santiago Espinal has already manned five positions for the Reds this season. Even as starting players have returned from the injured list, manager Terry Francona wants to get Espinal into his lineups as often as he can. “You’re trying to find places to play him," Francona said. "I don’t know if he has to be in there every day, but I do like the idea because if you’re picking out a lineup, you can get him anywhere. He plays different positions. He catches the ball. Going back to Spring Training, Espinal quickly earned Francona's trust with how he handled himself. Whether it's his more natural infield positions – second base, shortstop and third base – or the outfield, Espinal is dedicated to perfecting his skills, and he plays with enthusiasm. It's just part of the role of being a utility player. "When you have a guy like me, Tito can do whatever he wants," Espinal said. "It doesn’t matter where he puts me. He knows I’m going to do a great job and I will do the little things that matter. I just go out there, compete and do my thing.” |
One of the more recent new forays for Espinal is playing right field, which he has done three times this season with two starts after not having appeared there in the big leagues. He played six games in left field last season. When an infielder moves to the outfield, it's Reds first base/outfield coach Collin Cowgill's job to start teaching the basics of the position. Cowgill quickly found Espinal already knew what he was doing – especially in right field. “Not surprisingly, at all. He’s just a baseball player," Cowgill said. "Everything about him, the way he hits, the way he runs the bases, the way he defends, the way he prepares – it’s definitely no shock. “He’s had a few opportunities out there, sparingly, but he played a little in college. The instincts that guy possesses on the baseball field – you can put him anywhere." |
Doing well in the outfield means getting first-step reactions right, reading balls off the bat and taking good routes to catch fly balls. Although each outfielder is handed scouting cards to position himself properly on the field or can be moved with hand signals from the bench by Cowgill, Espinal already has the mental "cheat code." “He’s so instinctive," Cowgill said. "He thinks along with the at-bat so well. He knows [the pitcher]. He knows who these hitters are. It’s a nice little formula for where the ball is going to go. So he’s got a pretty good idea of when it’s coming to him.” It wasn't a surprise that when he was asked to begin taking grounders at first base – another new position – Espinal embraced it. He has been working with coach Mike Napoli, a former first baseman. “It felt good. I felt like I was at shortstop," said Espinal, who borrowed teammate Jeimer Candelario's first-base glove. Francona had no immediate plans for Espinal to get starts at first base, but he wanted it as an option for in-game changes. “Because he’s our backup at a lot of positions, it’s hard to take him out," Francona said. In 19 games this season entering Sunday, Espinal is batting .293 with a .704 OPS. Until Friday, he had the Major Leagues' longest active streak without a strikeout. It ended at 32 plate appearances. |
Espinal, 30, was acquired from the Blue Jays near the end of 2024 Spring Training after the Reds suddenly became shorthanded for infielders. Although he batted .246 with a .651 OPS, he hit a career-best nine home runs and stood out as a strong glove amid a suspect Cincinnati team defense that ranked near the bottom of the Majors. “They have given me an opportunity to be the player that I am. But it comes with a lot of trust," Espinal said. “I know I am going to do a great job. I believe in myself. I am a good player. I just do my job. That’s all I do.” A 2022 American League All-Star for Toronto, Espinal quickly became a popular teammate in the clubhouse. “I like him because he’s always bringing happiness to the game. He can play any position and is always able to play any role," shortstop Elly De La Cruz said. “He’s happy all of the time.” For Espinal, that's easy. “I’m living my dream, every day," Espinal said. "I remind myself every day that this is my dream, this is what I love doing and I thank God that I wake up every day. It’s something I won’t forget during days, months or the season. I smile a lot when I play this game. I love this game." |
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Former Reds president and general manager Walt Jocketty – who led the club's baseball operations from 2008-16 – died on Friday after a long illness. A three-time MLB executive of the year, including in 2010 with Cincinnati, Jocketty was 74. Jocketty led the Reds during their National League Central division title runs in 2010 and ‘12 and to a National League Wild Card berth in ‘13. He also signed cornerstone players Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips to long-term contracts. “Great man. Great person,” Reds bench coach Freddie Benavides said Saturday. "It was tough to hear the news today." Benavides was managing and coaching in the Reds’ player development system under Jocketty before moving to the big league staff in 2014. He was also a player in Colorado when Jocketty was assistant GM. "He let you work," Benavides said. "He hired good people, let them work. He’d talk to you, call you. He was just a good baseball man and always fought for his staff members and took care of them." Jocketty also spent 13 seasons as the leader of the Cardinals’ baseball operations, including a 2006 World Series winner. "Instant credibility from a general manager, a guy who has done it and put teams together," Benavides said. "He started there and putting this team together, those playoff-caliber years that we had signing guys, and he wasn’t afraid to trade.” |
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